Post navigation

I Am the Monarch – Chapter 103: Salvation (4)

“Damn it! That old man really is a pain.”
“Anyways, it seems like we can finally see the end.”

Luke Aip and Mito Posis had fishy smiles on their faces.
Their gazes moved beyond the battlefield.

“Bastards! You will never pass over here!”

From between the two hills.
An old man with a big body was swinging his sword from the narrow passageway.
It was Io Lancephil who was leading the rearguard.
He blocked the rebel army well with just a small number of knights and soldiers.
But the number of soldiers that remained decreased to the point that he could count them with his eyes thanks to the prolonged battle.

‘Kugh! At least, we have to block this passage.’

If they just blocked here, he would be able to tie down Mito and Luke for a while.

“Leo knights to the front!”

At Io’s orders, the knights that were resting for a moment, stepped up.

Slash! Stab!

The sharp blades split the air and cut down the throats of the enemy soldiers.
It was a really amazing show of force.
But the numbers of the enemies were just too much.

“Kill!”
“Kill! We must catch the prince!”

New soldiers appeared over the fallen ones.
They swung their spears and blades with all of their strength.

Slash.

The knights that were exhausted couldn’t completely dodge the enemy attacks.
One spear stabbed the arm of a knight.

“Kugh! Son of a bitch!”

The knight cursed and moved.
He tried to fall back but the enemy soldiers stuck together like ants.

“Kugh!”

In the end, one knight finally lost his life.

“Kuk.”

Io saw that scene and ground his teeth.
The soldiers and knights were falling one by one.
The defensive line blocking the passage was getting sloppier at every moment.
Then, the voices of Mito and Luke were heard.

“Hahaha! Io Lancephil! It seems like you are also exhausted now!”
“It’s time to catch the old tiger!”

Cynical voices.
However Io didn’t react.
He just glared at them with cold and fierce eyes.

‘Ugh. What kind of eyes……’
‘A tiger is still a tiger even when old.’

Luke and Mito felt a chill and shrugged.

“Kill!”
“Kill them and chase after the prince!”

They yelled out at their feelings of embarrassment.
The two barons that flinched ran towards Io and the rearguard.
It was indeed a situation of life and death.
Then.

“Huh?”
“What is it?”

The enemy soldiers who were located at the front, frowned.
A feeling covering their entire bodies.
Their feet certainly trembled.

Dudududu!

Followed by that, a sound that shook the ground hit their ears.
It was to the point that now, they didn’t even have to tilt their ears.
Everyone’s sights moved behind the rearguard.
From between the two cliffs.
Dust surged up over the passageway.

Followed by that, the sound of the horn trumpet was heard.
At the same time, the troop flag that was at the front fluttered in the wind.

&lt;Amaranth.&gt;

It was Roan’s Amaranth troop, the ones they had nightmares about.

“Ah…..”

Io let out a low cry of exclamation.
His legs gave out.
And that was also the same for the other knights and soldiers.
The rearguard had touched expressions of their faces and moved to the sides.
Roan and the Amaranth troop appeared from the open passageway.
The Amaranth troop quickly took formation and sealed the passage.
Roan fell back and looked at Io.

“Sir count! Are you okay?”
“I am. I’m fine.”

Io smiled faintly and nodded.
Roan smiled as if he was glad.

“For now, we will catch the rebel army.”
“Their number isn’t that small.”

Io had a worried facial expression.
Because the Amaranth troop had only 300 soldiers when the rebel army composed of 4000.
Even when he combined the numbers of the surviving rearguard soldiers, they numbered only up to 1000.

“It’s fine.”

But even so, Roan was overflowing with confidence.
He pulled the reins and stood in front of the Amaranth troop.

“Luke Aip! Mito Posis!”

A loud voice shot out.
It was an overwhelming look even in front of 4,000 enemy soldiers.

“Oho! I was wondering who it was, but it was Roan!”
“The one who pretended to be a general when he is merely a commoner!”

Luke and Mito let out mocking statements.
Actually, they were seriously nervous at the Amaranth troop’s entrance.
But after they realized that their numbers were only 300, they becamr cocky again.

“Even if that wasn’t the case, I still wanted to cut your throat!”

Luke raised his right hand after yelling.
It was to lay down the order to charge.
Then, Roan raised the Travias Spear and looked at the enemy army.

“Listen, soldiers belonging to Aip’s and Posis’ army!”

He put strength into his voice with the Flamdor mana technique.
Thanks to that, the normal soldiers felt an overwhelming pressure the instant they heard the voice.

“Luke Aip and Mito Posis raised their blades against the 1st prince of the Rinse kingdom and the owner of the Regate Dagger!”

His mana boiled.
Heat made his voice hot.

“This is a clear rebellion and treason! You have now taken side with the rebels!”

Boom!

The faces of the soldiers of the rebel army became stiff.
It was true that they were chasing after Simon because of Luke’s and Mito’s orders.
Although there were some that were greedy to rise to a higher position or for goods among them, most of them moved because they didn’t have any other options.

“A, are were really from the rebel army?”
“I, I just did what I was ordered to?”

The soldiers started to get shaken up.
Roan didn’t miss this opportunity.

“The ones that participated in the rebellion will be beheaded and their families will become slaves!”

It was the decisive blow.

“Get our heads cut off? Die?”
“Slaves? Our father, mother will become slaves?”
“My son is only three but he will become a slave?”

Several voices could be heard from everywhere.
Luke and Mito realized that things were progressing in a weird way and yelled.

“Don’t be shaken! Our situation is much more favorable! Prince Simon is right in front of our noses!”
“If we can just catch the prince, we’ll be able to live well!”

The soldiers were shaken up once again.

“Right. We are already in this anyways.”

“Prince Simon won’t leave us alone.”
“Now that it has turned out like this, we must catch the prince.”

The atmosphere turned around again in a weird fashion.
But Roan still had a confident expression on his face.
He pulled out a dagger with fancy symbols from his waist.

“This is the symbol of the 1st prince of Rinse, the Regate Dagger! Prince Simon gave me this dagger to me and named me as the one responsible for the region of Tale! My orders are the orders of the prince, and my words are the words of the prince!”

His eyes and voice were showing his solid resolution.
The rebel soldiers nervously swallowed their saliva.
They looked at each other faces and started to tremble.

‘We are just normal soldiers.’
‘We just want to eat three meals a day and live happily with our families.’
‘I can’t mess with the lives of my family.’

The soldiers were commoners you could see everywhere.
But they were afraid of Luke and Mito and couldn’t move as they wished.
They were still confused and couldn’t bring out the courage.
Then.

Puuuuuuu!

A troop appeared from the plains of the west with the sound of the horn trumpet.
They were members of the Amaranth troop that returned to their HQ in Mediasis Village to ride on horses and go to battle again.
Their number was close to 1,000.
The rebel army had 4,000, and the Amaranth troop combined with the rearguard were 2,000.
The number of soldiers that had an overwhelming difference was now closed by quite a lot.

‘They came.’

Roan saw at the friendly troop that appeared and smiled.
He yelled with a calm and composed voice.

“Are you going to die as rebels! Or suppress the rebels and become heroes?!”

His voice was filled with strength and rang through the battlefield.
The rebel soldiers that were confused when they saw the new troop appear, became resolute.
If it was this much of a difference, they couldn’t conclude a victory against the Amaranth troop.
They couldn’t throw away the lives of their families and their own lives in a fight that wasn’t certain.
They weren’t people like Luke or Mito who had huge ambitions.

“I, I will surrender!”
“I will also surrender!”

The normal soldiers came running towards the Amaranth troop while their arms were raised.
That was the start.

“We just did as we were ordered to!”
“Save us!”
“We didn’t have any other intentions!”
Several soldiers raised their arms in surrender and moved out of their ranks.

‘Okay!’

Roan cheered up at that sight.
His game changer had worked.
Roan had three reasons in why he gave the opportunity to surrender.
The first.

‘If we battle like this, a lot of people will get injured.’

The second.

‘Most of them just moved while following orders.’

The soldiers couldn’t refuse an order by a noble and moved.
The third.

‘I have to absorb these soldiers to become mine.’

The current Amaranth troop had barely 2,000 soldiers.
Although they had clearly increased compared to before, thinking about the future, it was a really regrettable level.
If they were soldiers that already faced several battles, they would be able to become strong and excellent soldiers with just a little bit of training.
On top of that.

‘If I can just migrate the families of the soldiers……..’

He would be able to secure quite the number of residents in an instant.
With these reasons, Roan tried to make them surrender, and it succeeded really well.

“Stop!”
“I will slice the throats of those who surrender!”

Luke and Mito were greatly agitated and were trying to stop the soldiers trying to leave their ranks.
Thanks to that, the two people that were at the back of the troop ended up coming to the front.
Roan, who was calmly checking on the situation, didn’t miss this opportunity.

“Harrison.”

Harrison quickly knocked an arrow at the voice that called to him in a low tone.
He was also waiting for Luke and Mito to enter into his range.

Luke gasped at the sudden situation.
Mito started to fall down while his eyes opened up wide from the situation.

Boom!

He rolled on the ground with a heavy sound.

“Damn!”

Luke quickly got down from his horse and hid his body.

“Si, sir baron!”
“Baron Posis!”

The soldiers belonging to Posis saw the deceased Mito and yelled.

“It’s the last chance! Is there no one else that will surrender!”

His voice filled with mana, rang through the battlefield.
The last note.
It was at this moment.
The confused soldiers started to leave their ranks just like they were water.

“No! No! You stupid bastards!”

Luke yelled but he couldn’t stop the soldiers.
In the end, the only ones that remained with him were the commanders and adjutants; they only amounted to a hundred.

“Thi, this…….A commoner bastard dares……!”

Luke couldn’t hold down his rage.
Everything had ended anyways.

“At the very least, I will kill you!”

He attacked Roan.
It was a really ignorant and reckless attack.
Roan spun his spear once and rode on his horse.

“You…..”

A cold voice flowed.

“…aren’t my opponent.”

Right after he said that, the Travias Spear drew a line of light and moved.

Stab!

The spear moved strangely and stabbed his body after fending off his blade.

“Kuhok.”

Luke yelled and collapsed like that.

“The, the road to, to escape was in front of me…….. Grr.”

He couldn’t finish his last words.
Luke ended up dying like that.

“Sir baron!”
“Kugh! Baron Aip!”

The commanders and adjutants following him yelled aloud
Roan just looked at that silently and then shook his right hand.
It was a signal that meant charge.
The Amaranth troop moved silently and quickly.
The remaining rebel soldiers couldn’t become their opponents at all.
They left success that was in front of their eyes and failed.
And the ones that had stopped them was none other than Roan.

*****

The Poskein Exodus had ended.
On top of that, the spies that tried to kill Simon were also captured.
But Elton and the spy planted by the 3rd prince Kallum didn’t miss the opportunity and escaped to their own territories when they got the chance.
Simon didn’t order to chase them.
As monsters didn’t appear anymore from the lake, it was just like the subjugation had ended.
Everyone cheered up and were happy but Roan wasn’t like that.
One corner of his heart sunk deeply.
327 deceased soldiers.
He had expected that it wasn’t going to be an easy subjugation.
But even so, his losses were too big.
He remembered Troop Commander Gale, Mendel, Keniss, and etc. Gave up their lives to rescue Corps Commander Aaron.
But of course, every time Roan battled, he was improving himself.
In spear skills, mana technique, strategies, as a commander……
But he felt that everyone and every memory piled up in his heart.

“Troop commander.”

A familiar voice rang out.
As he moved his eyes, &nbsp;he saw Austin.

“The prince is looking for you.”

Maybe it was because of Roan’s sad expression that Austin spoke carefully.

“Austin.”
“Yes, commander.”
“Support the families of the deceased in an abundant manner and take care of their graves.”

Only then could Austin realize.
The reason why Roan was sad.

‘He’s a really good person.’

He felt that he was fortunate to be able to serve an excellent commander.
Austin nodded with a solemn expression.

“Certainly! I will do as you order.”
“Please.”

Roan patted Austin’s shoulders and moved.
A large shadow appeared following his back.

*****

The widest conference room in the HQ of the Amaranth troop.
The nobles were taking their places with Simon at the center.
There was some internal disturbance because of the spies like Luke, Mito, and Elton but just looking at the subjugation itself, it truly was an amazing success.
Especially when they heard that the 2nd and 3rd princes were having a hard time in their subjugations, the several nobles couldn’t hide their happiness.
Everyone was excited and they each started to boast about their merits.
Now, the merit awarding ceremony was going to start when they returned to the capital of Miller.
Even if you put aside the competition for the throne with Simon, who they were serving, it was obvious that they themselves were going to be rewarded.
Some nobles may obtain additional territories and some may climb ranks.
They would obviously feel happy.
Of course, this was excluding some nobles that raised their blades against Simon. Punishment would come first for them.
Simon was also planning to ask the sins of Tommy and Kallum.

‘But well, they will certainly act innocent.’

Simon thought of his two brothers and put on a smile.
Well, even if it was him, he would be planning in how to cut their tails.
But Simon still had a method.

‘From the two, I’m catching one first.’

Simon, Tommy, and Kallum.
The reason why the competition for the throne wasn’t easy was because the background of the three princes was similar.
Because of that, for one person to face two princes at the same time was close to impossible.
If they made a mistake, they would be the ones suffering the blow instead.
Because of that, Simon was planning to give up on someone and get rid of another one first.

‘Kukukug.’

Laughter kept coming out.
The moment Simon’s blade went to only one person.
The other person would have to choose.
To grab his hands or stand at the other side.

‘But of course, standing at the other side won’t be easy.’

Solid and scary plans were set up in his head.
Then.

“It’s Troop Commander Roan.”

One knight that was standing at the entrance notified everyone of Roan’s entrance.
At that moment, the noisy room became quiet in an instant.
The youth that had a confident attitude and was strong willed and also had a soft and prudent spirit.
The troop commander of the Amaranth troop and the one that had the commanding and strategizing rights for the region of Tale, Roan, had entered the conference room.
Everyone seated at this place knew.
That if it wasn’t for the youth in front of their eyes, they wouldn’t be able to cheer like this.
But some nobles were also swept up in another emotion.
Displeasure.
Although it was because they had neglected military discipline, Roan had executed a noble while he was merely a commoner.
They could only recognize his abilities but he was someone that made you feel bitter.
A person you wanted close, but instinctively made some distance with him.
That was who Roan was.

“Ahem.”
“Hmhm.”

Roan ignored the stifled sights and moved.

“I came by receiving your call.”

He stood in front of Simon and kneeled dowm.

“Right. I called you because I have something to tell you.”

He spoke in a soft voice.
Roan bowed.

“But before that…..”

He took out the dagger with fancy symbols from his waist and offered it with his two hands.

“The subjugation has ended. Troop Commander Roan of Amaranth, I will be returning the Regate Dagger to the prince just like I promised.”
“Right. You are returning it to me along with victory, just like you promised.”
Simon put a faint smile.

“Listen well!”
At that moment, Simon yelled in a loud voice and stood up.
At the sudden situation, the many nobles also stood up and bowed.

“This Poskein Lake subjugation has concluded in an excellent way. Now, I will be asking you. Who’s the one that raised the greatest merits?”
“……..”

At the sudden question, the nobles just looked at each other.
Their eyes were shaking.
Everyone knew the answer, but no one could easily open their mouths.
Then, Viscount Tio Ruin stepped up.

“It’s Roan, Troop Commander of Amaranth.”

At that moment, a faint smile appeared on Simon’s mouth.
He feigned ignorance and asked again.

“Who?”
“The one that raised the biggest merits is Troop Commander Roan.”

As Tio replied, Simon looked at the other nobles that were standing as if they were chicks that just ate honey.

“Do you think differently?”

Right after he said that, Io stepped up.

“The answer Viscount Tio Ruin gave is correct. The person at the top of the rank of merits for this subjugation is Troop Commander Roan.”

Followed by Tio, Io also stepped up.
By now the nobles that recognized Roan’s abilities like Ralph, Rael, and etc. also added in.

“It’s Roan.”
“Troop Commander of Amaranth.”

The atmosphere flowed in a weird fashion.
The nobles that were displeased at Roan just had their mouths shut.
They couldn’t speak badly of Roan’s merits as they wished.
How could they when he saved Simon’s life?!

“I think it is Roan.”

In the end, Roan was at the top of the ranking for merits.
Simon put on a smile and pulled out the dagger from his waist.

Srung!

The sound of metal rang out pleasantly.

“I, Simon Rinse, the 1st prince of the Rinse Kingdom and the owner of the Regate Dagger, invest Roan with the title of nobility of a baron instead of his majesty.”
“……..!”

While everyone was surprised, Simon touched Roan’s head and shoulders with the side of his dagger and then put it back.
Until that moment, the room was filled with silence.
Also for Roan.
Of course, the Rinse Kingdom had more cases compared to the other kingdoms where commoners became nobles.
If you raised big enough merits several times and had the help of someone, you could become a noble.
But taking into account that Roan was a sinner until recently, they thought that even if he was given a title, it would be a baronet.
The difference between a baronet and a baron was like the sky and the earth.
A baronet was a rank that was impossible to inherit.
But it was different for the baron.
If you just had a territory, you could say that you were a genuine noble.
Roan felt moved in a deep part of his heart.
He remembered the looks of his allies that left his side as they died in the battlefield.
But the merit rewards still didn’t end.

“Also, I won’t retrieve the Regate Dagger.”

Boom!

Everyone had surprised expressions on their faces once again.
The Regate Dagger was no different from the symbol of the 1st prince.
Giving it with the condition of returning it after the subjugation ended and not taking it back at all had completely different meanings.
And this was.

‘Roan is my person.’

Similar to that.
For Roan, who just became a noble, it was the biggest strength.
But of course because he was labeled as someone of the 1st prince, he was becoming enemies with the 2nd and 3rd princes. But there were more good points than bad ones.
Regardless of the surprise of the nobles, Simon had a really comfortable expression on his face.
He touched his chin and said nonsense words.

“The unfortunate word is that I don’t have any territory to give with the title of baron…… His merits are too precious to just give him the title and not a territory.”
“Hahaha!”

At that moment, a boisterous laughter came out.
Simon and the other nobles moved their heads to find the owner of the voice.

“Count Lancephil. Why are you laughing like that?”

Simon tilted his head.
The owner of the voice was none other than Io.
Io smiled brightly and pointed at the map that was spread on the table.

“I want to give the southern part of Lancephil’s territory with the region of Tale included to Baron Roan.”

It wasn’t surprising anymore.
It was like approaching the climax.
It was rumored that the territory of Lancephil was spacious.
But just because of that, it didn’t mean that it lost worth.
The nobles were also like this, but the most surprised person was Roan himself.

‘The Regate Dagger, the title of baron, and on top of that a territory? Just what……’

A lot of things were happening in an instant.
He did think that he would become a noble some day.
To be a monarch, to be a great commander, it was something he would automatically gain when he worked hard.
But he didn’t expect that this sudden situation would happen.

“Hahaha! Is that fine?”
“Yes. Roan is also a benefactor in my life. I also want to…….”

Io thought of the battle a few days ago and a faint light appeared in his eyes.
That light was as dense and deep as the eyes of a father.

“Pay him back.”

His voice rang in the air.
And also rang in Roan’s heart.

‘Count Lancephil.’

He felt stunned.
Then, a hand appeared in front of his eyes.
As he raised his head, he saw Simon smiling.

“Let’s go to the royal palace with me and have an audience with his majesty. Roan……”

As someone who have already lived almost one life, you would imagine that he would be able to figure out what the prince is doing, even if he just lived in the army he should still be able to see what the prince is doing by giving him the Regate dagger and a title. I just feel like Roan is sometimes acting like an shonun character where he believes in someone just because they are good to him. It makes this sometimes hard to read but i really really like this novel and i hope that he understand politics better soon.

*shonen
Well, you should wait the next chapter to say that, here it is showed what are his rewards for all what he did and i’m sure in the next chapter (if it isn’t a continuation of the rewards) we will have a reflexion about that.

Thank you for the chapter! Can you guys stop trying to correct Koukouseidesu all the time, even if its baronet it shouldn’t be a problem enough for you not to understand its a noble title. Its not like he’s going to stay that rank for the whole story.

Hm, there’s no such thing as a difference between Barone and Baron.
If they’re names the author chose then it’s fine. However, if Subak was the one choosing the words I’d count it as a mistranslation so I suggest to add an explanation in the notes.
As already mentioned Baronet is below a Baron so you probably meant that one.

By the way, in reality both titles were usually hereditary, though, it depends a bit on the country.

I love you so much. Thank you for the chapter. Our Roan is quickly getting there. I can’t wait for the time he got to the lake. Also, Simon’s mana technique is the reason for him becoming a madman. I just hope that Roan is able to stray Simon away from that future—because Simon looks like a great guy to lead (he looks for quality rather than titles).

I love you so much. Thank you for the chapter. Our Roan is quickly getting there. I can’t wait for the time he got to the lake. Also, Simon’s mana technique is the reason for him becoming a madman. I just hope that Roan is able to stray Simon away from that future, because Simon looks like a great guy that can lead (he looks for quality rather than titles).